Texas must face two of last season’s playoff teams within the first five weeks of the season.
When Texas faces Oklahoma in the Red River Rivalry each year, it typically dictates an early favorite for the Big 12 Championship. However, that’s not the most important game on their schedule in 2020.
ESPN recently listed each Top 25 team’s most important game, chose LSU as the primary opponent on Texas’ schedule. For the Longhorns, traveling to Baton Rouge on Sept. 12 will showcase what they’re capable of.
The hype could not have been higher surrounding the Texas vs. LSU matchup in 2019, a hard-fought battle where quarterback Sam Ehlinger threw for 401 yards. That only increases the excitement in 2020, where Texas will have to face the defending National Champions in their own hostile environment.
Although the Tigers sent several talented starters to the NFL recently, they still have an incredible coaching staff and highly-rated recruits on their roster eagerly waiting to become the next man up.
Texas continues to face consistency issues of their own. They can show up against the top opponents in the nation, yet fall to an unranked team just weeks later. In hopes of improving that aspect, head coach Tom Herman reshaped his coaching staff this offseason with two new coordinators in Mike Yurcich and Chris Ash.
The talent is clearly evident in Austin. Oddly enough, ESPN chose Texas as the most important game on Oklahoma’s schedule. Under an experienced quarterback in Ehlinger with several highly-rated weapons surrounding him, this could be the year that Texas gets over the hump. Unfortunately, that likely means they have to defeat both LSU and Oklahoma early on in the season.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the college football season continues to sit in a puddle of uncertainty. If the season were to kick off as scheduled, the first game after very minimal offseason work could become a more important stepping stone than any other year.